Bridge Jumping

Chapter Five

The first day of school arrived and my stomach was in knots as I walked to the new building. I was dressed in my new ripped jeans, an army camouflage tee and my converse high tops. My mom had helped with my hair. She'd even allowed me to wear a little make-up, some lipstick and blush.

I had plans to meet Hannah and Jess in the schoolyard and when I arrived I spotted them right away. They saw me and waved me over.

"Hey," I said when I reached them.

I studied the students milling about. Most of the girls had outdone themselves with their clothes, hair and makeup. Some of the eighth graders looked really old, like they were in high school already. I felt a little intimidated, like a very small fish in a large pond. I reached a hand up and patted my hair.

"Don't worry – it looks good," Jess told me, smiling. Her face was round and full of color, and I was immediately relieved.

"Thanks," I said, smiling back.

"I hope we're in the same homeroom," Hannah said. She was scanning the crowd. "Look," she said in a quieter tone. "There's Matt Connors." She pointed, and we swiveled around to look.

Matt was an eighth grader and supposedly the cutest boy in the entire city. I looked him over – he had brown hair, blue eyes, and was tall enough to pass for a freshman. And, he was actually smiling - I liked that. Most of the boys I knew tried to look tough by not smiling. Boys could be so stupid sometimes.

"He's all right," Jess said. She had her sights set on another eighth grader - Kevin Liner. She'd had a crush on him for over a year and now that they were in the same school, this was her big chance.

The bell rang and we filed inside.

We quickly settled into our new routine. We met every morning at Dunks, where I'd get a lemon donut and a hot chocolate. Jess would get a coffee roll and water. Hannah would get a small coffee, with extra cream and seven sugars. We'd eat as we walked to school. We weren't in each other's homerooms, but thankfully we had some of the same classes. We always ate lunch together. At recess, we'd stand around with the other girls and watch the boys play basketball. After school, we'd walk down to the square.

Erin never showed up. I tried to get in touch with her a few times, but no one ever answered the phone at her house. I wondered if she was still in Iceland. I was sad I'd never had the chance to spend more time with her, but pretty soon I was swept up by school and homework and friends, and I didn't think about her so much. I was basically happy with my life – things were going along great – and then suddenly, it all changed.

It was November, my absolute favorite time of year because it was smack dab in the middle of the holidays. I loved everything about the season, from the way it smelled so crisp and fresh, to the pumpkins that sat on my neighbors' porches, to the holiday commercials that bombarded me from the television. People seemed nicer, too - as if they were trying to get on Santa's good list or something.

One Saturday afternoon, Hannah and I went to visit her cousin, Sara. Sara was a year older than us and hanging out with her meant hanging out with her friends, both girls and boys. There were boys in school I was friendly with, but actually spending time with boys outside of school, besides my brother and my father, was an entirely new experience for me. I had spent extra time on my hair that day.

"Bye, Mom," Hannah said as she got out of the car.

"Thanks," I said as I hopped out too.

Sara came out the front door as we got to the stairs. "Hey, guys," she said, a big smile on her pretty face. She waved at Hannah's mom. "Hi, Auntie," she called. Hannah's mom tooted the horn a few times and waved out the window as she drove away.